The US said it was treating seriously North Korea’s warning over the weekend that it has entered a “state of war” with South Korea, although White House officials noted the regime’s history of blusterous rhetoric. 美国表示，正严肃对待朝鲜在上周末发出的有关进入与韩国“战争状态”的警告——尽管白宫官员指出，朝鲜政权历来喜欢发表虚张声势的恫吓言论。

“We take these threats seriously and remain in close contact with our South Korean allies. But we would also note that North Korea has a long history of bellicose rhetoric and threats and today’s announcement follows that familiar pattern,” the White House national security council said yesterday. “我方严肃对待这些威胁，并与我们的韩国盟友保持密切联络。但我们也注意到，朝鲜一贯喜欢发表好战言论和威胁，其今天发表的声明与世人熟悉的这种做法相符，”美国白宫国家安全委员会昨日表示。

The statement on Saturday from North Korea drew a calm response from the South Korean public, which is accustomed to such language. But analysts warned it would be difficult for either side to ratchet down the high level of tension on the peninsula. 韩国公众对朝鲜上周六发表的声明反应平静，似乎对朝方的言论已经习以为常。但分析人士警告称，双方现在都难以缓和朝鲜半岛的高度紧张局势。

Peter King, a Republican member of Congress from New York who sits on the House intelligence and homeland security committees, said he did not regard the North Korean statement as an “empty threat”. 纽约州共和党众议员、众议院情报委员会和国土安全委员会委员彼德•金(Peter King)表示，他并不认为朝鲜的声明是一种“空洞的威胁”。

“[North Korean leader] Kim Jong-eun is trying to establish himself. He is trying to be the tough guy. He is 28, 29 years old, and he keeps going further and further out, and I don’t know if he can get himself back in,” Mr King said. “So my concern would be that he may feel to save face he has to launch some sort of attack on South Korea, or some base in the Pacific.” “（朝鲜领导人）金正恩(Kim Jong-eun)试图确立自己的地位。他想打造硬汉形象。他今年二十八九岁，言行越来越出格，我不知道他能否让自己下得来台。”彼得•金表示，“因此我担忧的是，他也许会觉得，为了挽回面子，不得不对韩国的目标或是太平洋的某个基地发动某种攻击。”

North Korean state media have spent several weeks condemning US-South Korea joint military exercises and UN sanctions that followed its nuclear test last month. 朝鲜官方媒体数周来一直在谴责美韩联合军演，谴责朝鲜今年2月进行核试验后联合国出台的制裁措施。

As part of the exercises, the Pentagon this week dispatched two nuclear-capable B-2 stealth bombers from the US to the Korean peninsula . In response to the sorties, Pyongyang said US behaviour had “entered the reckless phase of an actual war”. 作为美韩联合军演的一部分，五角大楼上周派出两架可挂载核弹的B-2隐形轰炸机，从美国本土远程飞临朝鲜半岛执行投弹演练。针对此举，平壤方面表示，美方的行为“已进入不顾一切的实际开战阶段”。

Despite the aggressive rhetoric, the threat was couched in conditional language. The statement said: “If the US and the South Korean puppet group perpetrate a military provocation for igniting a war, [it will] develop into an all-out war, a nuclear war.” 在好斗言论的表面之下，朝鲜的威胁在措辞上采用了条件句。其声明称：“如果美国和南朝鲜傀儡集团发起点燃战火的军事挑衅，（那将）升级为一场全面战争、一场核战争。”

The consensus among analysts is that North Korea would be unlikely to initiate a war, given the technological inferiority of its military resources to those of the US. For decades, anti-US propaganda has been a staple theme of North Korean efforts to boost patriotic feeling. 分析人士之间的共识是，鉴于朝鲜的军事资源在技术上与美国不可同日而语，朝鲜不太可能挑起战争。几十年来，反美宣传是朝鲜投入大量精力的固定主题，目的是振奋爱国热情。

“I think it’s in the context of deterrence, with a lot of it directed at the domestic audience,” said Daniel Pinkston, a North Korea expert at the International Crisis Group. “With the ongoing exercises, the leadership needs to look strong in the face of external threats – real or perceived – or else run the risk of looking weak internally.” “我认为这要从威慑的角度来解读，其中有很多话是说给国内听的。”国际危机集团(International Crisis Group)的朝鲜问题专家丹尼尔•平克斯顿(Daniel Pinkston)表示，“在美韩军演仍在进行之际，朝鲜领导人需要摆出在外来威胁——无论是真实的还是想象的——面前强悍的形象，要不然朝鲜国内可能会认为他比较软弱。”

Pyongyang also raised the prospect of terminating operations at the Kaesong Industrial Complex, the sole remaining site of inter-Korean economic co-operation. 平壤方面还提出终止开城工业区(Kaesong Industrial Complex)运营的可能性，这是朝韩之间仅存的经济合作特区。

North Korea had ceased communications on Thursday on a telephone link used to confirm the number of South Korean workers entering the complex each day. But it had allowed the complex’s 123 companies to continue operating, drawing suggestions in South Korea that the decision stemmed from Pyongyang’s need for foreign currency. 上周四，朝鲜切断了用于确认每日进入开城工业区的韩国工人人数的一条电话线，但仍允许区内的123家企业继续运营。韩国有人指出，此举说明朝鲜需要外汇。